The Godfathers of rap

by Daniel Brown

Article published on the
2009-01-09
Latest update
2009-01-09 14:44 TU

The Last Poets.

The new documentary Made in Amerikkka, by French director Claude Santiago chronicles the rebirth of The Last Poets, a collective of New York musicians and poets, founded in May 1968. Their name was inspired by a poem by the South African poet Keorapetse Kgositsile. He believed in writing poetry before guns battles would take over… a feeling that was also shared by certain sectors of the African American society. World Tracks went to the French premiere of the 52 minute documentary and met the three founders of The Last Poets.

Abiodun Oyewole, Jalal Nuriddin and Omar Bin Hassan were clearly moved and shaken by Claude Santiago’s documentary. It features the founders of this iconoclastic band as they travel through half a century of musical and political upheaval for African Americans in the US.

World Tracks: The Last Poets part 1

09/01/2009 by Daniel Brown

“I’ve seen other documentaries on us,” said Oyewole, wiping away a tear after the documentary, “but this one got to me. Nothing has captured the essence of who we are, like this. I feel redeemed. It shows who we are, and we’re still around to tell the tale.”

“I wanted the Last Poets to identify with this film,” said a beaming Santiago after the projection. “They inspired me 30 years ago with their humanity, so it was the least I could do to return the favour.”

The Last Poets.

The Last Poets have released dozens of albums in the 40 years they have been around. Their work straddles adversity and conflict, with intimate brushes with prison, drugs and violence.

Their lyrics influenced generations of wordsmiths across the world. One critic wrote that the Last Poets’ politically charged raps, taut rhythms and engagement to their community “almost single-handedly laid the groundwork to the emergence of hip-hop.”

Intriguingly, their musical chronicles of the US in the 60s inspired the likes of Fela Kuti, Bob Marley and Joe Strummer of the Clash.

Nigerian-German hip-hop/soul artist Nneka has come a long way since she first spoke to Worldtracks in 2007. With the release of her fourth album Concrete Jungle and a guest appearance on the David Letterman show in the US, she’s quickly becoming one to watch.

Well-established French electro-pop duo Air have returned with a groovy and uptempo production, while innovative newcomers Sourya have used a Nintendo DS to pack more emotion into their debut album than a dancefloor can normally withstand.

Many musicians have been inspired by the ondes martenot. The electronic keyboard can produce a huge range of fascinating sounds but the instrument itself remains somewhat marginal and misunderstood. Christine Ott is determined to change that.

The Mexican-American singer Lhasa de Sela died on 1 January 2010, aged just 37. In tribute to her remarkable voice and force we rebroadcast a Worldtracks from 2003 which followed the release of her second album The Living Road.

French festival Les Transmusicales is renowned for its eclectic line-up of relatively unknown bands from all over the world. But some acts have gone on to bigger things, including Nirvana, Dizzee Rascal and Justice.

Klezmer is one of the most nomadic forms of world music and no Jewish wedding would be complete without it! World Tracks talks to David Krakauer about the revival of Klezmer and his mission to keep it out of the museum.